The Toronto Arrows have packed their Major League Rugby lineup with Canadian talent in their inaugural season.
But the Arrows look to 23-year-old New Zealander Sam Malcolm to quarterback their attack from fly half.
"He's got a very high rugby IQ," said Chris Silverthorn, Toronto's director of rugby. "It's been fantastic. It's kind of what we needed — someone with a high rugby IQ to really manage the game. He's been great."
Malcolm played from 2015 to '18 for Manawatu Turbos in the provincial Mitre 10 Cup, the second tier of the sport in New Zealand below Super Rugby. He represented New Zealand universities, played for the Super Rugby Hurricanes' under-20 side and tried out for the national under-20 team.
Malcolm and the Arrows (1-2-0) take on the Houston SaberCats (1-1-0) on Friday at Constellation Field in Sugar Land, Texas. It's a short turnaround after losing 35-30 to the defending champion Seawolves in Seattle last Sunday.
Malcolm, an accomplished kicker who ranks fifth in MLR scoring with 27 points, will take the field alongside 14 Canadians in the Arrows' starting 15 (centre Spencer Jones is Canadian-born but grew up in New Zealand while fullback Jack Evans was born in Vancouver before spending time in Wales).
The Kiwi says he is loving life in North America so far, despite the wintry conditions in Toronto.
"I had a bit of a reality check when I arrived in shorts off the plane," he said with a laugh. "I questioned what I had got myself into."
The Arrows have ties to the Hurricanes and have more eyes in New Zealand thanks to former Rugby Canada general manager Mike Chu, who now serves as New Zealand rugby's national coach manager.
Malcolm was attracted by the move because of the opportunity to play professionally and see the world.
"The quality of rugby is of high standard," he said of his first impression of MLR, noting the number of close results so far this season.
While not the biggest back, Malcolm sees himself as an all-around fly half, able to think and organize on the fly. He also prides himself on his defence.
"I'm pretty disappointed if a guy gets through me," he said.
The Arrows' matchday 23 Friday includes six full Canadian internationals in Rob Brouwer (9 caps), Paul Ciulini (8 caps), Tom Dolezel (16 caps), Andrew Ferguson (10 caps), Dan Moor (14 caps) and Andrew Wilson (1 cap).
Uruguayan internationals Leandro Leivas (72 caps) and Gaston Mieres (63 caps) could make their MLR debut off the bench along with Pat Lynott and Mike Smith.
Silverthorn has made three changes to the team that lost in Seattle with prop Rob Brouwer, lock Josh Van Horne and wing John Sheridan returning to the starting lineup. The Arrows have seven players away with Canada, with six of those set to start Friday against Chile in Americas Rugby Championship play in Langford, B.C.
Toronto has yet to have a practice with all 36 players in attendance.
"We're doing our best. It's not easy," Silverthorn said of the roster shuffling.
Houston is coming off a bye week. It opened the season with a 21-20 win over Austin Elite Rugby before losing 17-13 to San Diego on Feb. 9.
Friday is the fourth of eight straight games for the Arrows. Toronto will follow that stretch with eight consecutive home matches between April 7 and June 2 to close out the regular season.
Toronto Arrows Lineup
Rob Brouwer, Andrew Quattrin, Tom Dolezel, Josh Van Horne, Paul Ciulini, Peter Milazzo, Marcello Wainwright, Kolby Francis, Andrew Ferguson, Sam Malcolm, John Sheridan, Spencer Jones, Dan Moor (capt.), Avery Oitomen, Jack Evans.
Replacements
Steven Ng, Pat Lynott, Mike Smith, Tom Van Horne, Andrew Wilson, Riley Di Nardo, Leandro Leivas, Jack Evans, Gaston Mieres.
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Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press
